HDMI cables

Tokyojoe · **Posted:** Mon Dec 11, 2006 12:17 am

Okay, so I am getting away from vehicles and moving to HDTV's.

Since I have been out of the electronics world since fiber optics became popular, I am behind in the high tech world on this but I can make decent guestimates.

HDMI cables. I need to get one that is DVI to HDMI since my HD Cable box only has DVI Out. My question is with the signals being digital, 1's and 0's, are the Monster (super high end) cables really going to make significant difference over lesser brand cables? Those Monster cables are 2-3 x as much as those less know brands.

I can see the possibility of the Monster cables to reduce noise coming through them but for the HD signals, I am guessing that there isn't much difference.

Any expert thoughts on this?

dirtykj · **Posted:** Mon Dec 11, 2006 1:14 am

IMHO, it's a waste of money, but there will be "audiophiles" who will disagree vehemently.

10-ft DVI-HDMI cable for $16.95

hallb4 · **Posted:** Mon Dec 11, 2006 3:15 am

x2, high quality cables will only make a difference if you are going more than 15 feet.

unixxx · **Posted:** Mon Dec 11, 2006 2:14 pm

x3

You only need high quality cables for longer distances and noisy environments. For shorter distances, just make sure you get a half decent one.

psinsyd · **Posted:** Mon Dec 11, 2006 7:53 pm

Oh alright, lemme be the one to open the floodgates. MY opinion from back in the audio install days, is that high quality cables are often overlooked and make a more significant difference than people think, until you show them the light. In this case, we would always hook up the el cheapo cables and let them listen to their new system, and then hook up the audiophile quality cables to the system, and show them the difference. "I had no idea signal cables could make that much of a difference!" they used to say.

There's all kinds of science that goes into cable construction as far as the compounds they use in the actual conductors within the cable. Usually for audio you'll get more solid lows, brighter and cripser highs, yada yada yada. These compounds also offer the least resistance possible during signal flow. For video, I'd imagine you'd get a bit more vivid colors, crisper edges, and such.

There's no need to counter my opinion, cuz I don't want to make this a pi$$ing match, it's just that I'm kinda anal and passionate about such projects when I do them. I've always been partial to Straight Wire and Kimber Cable, but again, that's just me and my opinion.

No matter what cable you go with, HDMI is the way to go currently for HD. Huge bandwidth, and can do 7.1 surround AND video all in one cable!

Hope this helps!

dirtykj · **Posted:** Tue Dec 12, 2006 1:31 am

Note, DVI-HDMI cables will not carry sound to the HDMI end. It goes without saying that HDCP will probably not be supported in this configuration, as well.

But, who cares about HDCP right? It'll be broken in 3 ... 2 ... 1 .... (all you need is 40 conspiring devices to break the kindergarten-level handshake).

hallb4 · **Posted:** Tue Dec 12, 2006 2:04 am

He's right. Haha, I was reading the white paper on the HDCP and laughed how dumbed down their protection is. Another note, I think the length of HDMI cable is limited to 15 feet (or so), then you need to insert a repeater to boost the signal back up. Just an FYI if your setup requires it.

psinsyd, you seem to be more knowledgable than I in the EE aspect of this, do you think it will be as noticeable since the signal is digital? I can imagine analog signals benefiting from higher quality cables but will it be as beneficial for an HDMI cable?

Tokyojoe · **Posted:** Tue Dec 12, 2006 2:16 am

No need for the digital sound. I have a separate system hooked up directly to the HDTV using optical for 5.1 sound. I knew I wouldn't get everything with DVI to HDMI connection. I only need 3 ft of cable. The box is under the TV on the lower shelf. My main concern is video not audio. Not that I need the 1080P yet since I don't have Blue Ray or HD-DVD yet. I'll wait for one of those when the prices plummet in a year and the stronger of the two (remember VHS vs Betamax and IBM vs Apple - for us old farts) takes hold.

3 ft max of cable needed.

djformi · **Posted:** Thu Dec 28, 2006 9:42 am

I got both for the holidays not really impressed by either..
I got the panasonic DMP-BD10 for a steal....and then I got the HD for the 360. Nothing impressed me. Still waiting for the Sony Bravia to come in the mail...God I love christmas bonus checks well the wifes...lol

dirtykj · **Posted:** Thu Dec 28, 2006 2:36 pm

Really? Odd. Were you using component outs for the 360 or the VGA?

djformi · **Posted:** Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:14 am

components

dirtykj · **Posted:** Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:13 pm

djformi wrote:

components

People have been disappointed with component outs on X360 and HD-DVD ... colors are much better on the VGA out.

I'm going to try the HD-DVD add-on with my computer and see if there's anything to the AACS title key hack floating around

Told you it wouldn't take long ...

HDMI cables

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